New Delhi: Amazon has invested Rs 350 crore into its payments arm, Amazon Pay India, signalling a continued effort to expand its presence in the highly competitive Unified Payments Interface (UPI) market.
Regulatory filings with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) reveal that Amazon Pay has issued 3.5 crore equity shares to its parent entities, Amazon Corporate Holdings Pvt Ltd and Amazon.com Inc, through a rights issue.
This is Amazon’s third capital infusion into the Indian payments entity in less than a year. The company had earlier injected Rs 600 crore in June 2024 and Rs 300 crore in November 2024, pointing to a deliberate push to consolidate its position in India’s digital payments landscape.
UPI Market Still Dominated by Top Players
Despite consistent capital infusions, Amazon Pay’s market share in the UPI ecosystem remains small.
According to the latest data from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), PhonePe and Google Pay continue to dominate the space, jointly controlling nearly 85 per cent of the market. Amazon Pay holds just about 0.6 per cent, underlining the challenges faced by newer entrants in breaking user habits and platform loyalty.
Flipkart-backed Super.money is also expanding its fintech offerings and is reportedly looking to raise capital, adding further competition in the sector.
Focus on Merchant Payments and Diversified Services
In February 2024, Amazon Pay secured a payment aggregator (PA) licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), a regulatory move that enables it to handle merchant transactions more effectively. This follows its earlier approval for a prepaid payment instrument (PPI), strengthening its compliance foundation for offering broader financial services.
Currently, Amazon Pay’s offerings span UPI transactions, bill payments, and insurance premium payments. It has also partnered with several platforms, including IRCTC, BookMyShow, Kuvera, and MakeMyTrip, to branch into travel bookings, entertainment, and wealth management.
